{"id":2981,"date":"2012-04-08T07:24:55","date_gmt":"2012-04-08T12:24:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/update.midlandps.org\/?p=2981"},"modified":"2012-04-09T07:26:55","modified_gmt":"2012-04-09T12:26:55","slug":"midland-youth-take-action","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/update.midlandps.org\/index.php\/2012\/04\/midland-youth-take-action\/","title":{"rendered":"Midland youth take action"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Rachel Beard & Scott Bays<\/strong>speak up & staff writer<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

In order to meet certain college entry requirements, many high school students gather volunteer hours and leadership experience through school programs, such as Key Club or NHS. Some students, though, gather this experience through a program called MCYAC, or the Midland County Youth Action Council.<\/p>\n

\u201cBasically, we volunteer and then vote on grants,\u201d senior Rob Malecki said. \u201cMembers get a really fun experience along with something that looks really good on the college application. And they get new friends and new leadership experience. It\u2019s a leadership experience that you most likely won\u2019t be able to find anywhere else within Midland community.\u201d<\/p>\n

While their participation can look impressive on a resume, members of MCYAC, also known as YACs, strive to make a difference in their community as well.<\/p>\n

\u201cI wanted to help my community, and this was the perfect way to do it,\u201d senior Mallory Ginis said.<\/p>\n

Members of MCYAC are responsible for allocating donated money to nonprofit youth-related organizations that are looking for grants.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re a philanthropic group,\u201d senior Kimmy Dean said. \u201cWe grant money to programs that help kids.\u201d<\/p>\n

Organizations can apply for grants through the Midland Area Community Foundation website. The grant money comes from the Council of Michigan Foundations, a state-wide nonprofit group which provides grant money for nearly 350 programs in Michigan like MCYAC.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe give grants to different organizations,\u201d Ginis said. \u201cLike The Rock, the ESA, family centers.\u201d<\/p>\n

Since its founding, MCYAC has been involved in a variety of activities around Midland County.<\/p>\n

\u201cRecently, we donated to Young Life, which helps pregnant women in high schools,\u201d Dean said. \u201cWe also did Midnight on Main.\u201d<\/p>\n

MCYAC also recently gave a grant to another organization.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe actually donated to the Great Lakes Safety Training Center,\u201d Ginis said. \u201cThey wrote a grant proposal for a laser fire extinguisher. It simulates the real thing, so people who take the class can figure out how to use one.\u201d<\/p>\n

There are, however, certain requirements organizations have to meet in order to receive a grant.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s organizations that are doing something for the first time, they have to be doing this for the very first time, and it has to be for the benefit of the community, as opposed to just a few people,\u201d Malecki said. \u201cThat\u2019s mostly it. We sometimes do it for a lot of churches and
\nThe Rock, which is like a family center that a bunch of kids go to. We\u2019ll help them out with a lot of their projects, but it has to be something new. It can\u2019t be just giving money to keep something going.\u201d<\/p>\n

Aside from awarding grants, MCYAC members also organize charitable events in Midland County.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe always do a project in our community through schools,\u201d Dean said. \u201cThis year, it\u2019s the Kinetic Effect.\u201d<\/p>\n

Kinetic Effect will be an event centered on a poetry group.<\/p>\n

\u201cCurrently, we\u2019re working on bringing a slam poetry group, known as Speaking Forward to Creative 360,\u201d Malecki said. \u201cThey\u2019ll be putting on a show around late April. It\u2019s basically these two people who go up on a stage and recite this intense, passionate poetry they\u2019ve written. It\u2019s a really thought-provoking and interesting experience. And we\u2019re bringing it to Midland.\u201d<\/p>\n

When it comes to events like Kinetic Effect, MCYAC members are responsible for organizing everything from the snacks to the decorations to the number of chairs.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re planning on making people aware of it,\u201d senior Brittany Searle said. \u201cThese people have been through hard times, and the poems express their hard experiences.\u201d<\/p>\n

Members of MCYAC also participate in volunteer opportunities, such as buying Sharing Tree gifts and ringing bells for the Salvation Army.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe do service in community fundraisers,\u201d Searle said. \u201cIt\u2019s good for the community.\u201d<\/p>\n

YACs meet at the Midland Area Community Foundation building on Thursday nights. On March 15, MCYAC held a reading night.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re actually meeting at Eastlawn, where we\u2019re reading with the kindergartners,\u201d Ginis said. All of the kindergartners involved were each given four books to keep.<\/p>\n

Any Midland County middle or high school student can join MCYAC by printing out an application from the Midland Area Community Foundation website and mailing it in.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou join by attending three meetings and then fill out a membership form and you\u2019ll be officially a member,\u201d Malecki said. \u201cThe only other requirement is that you participate in the meetings.\u201d<\/p>\n

While MCYAC helps the community, it also provides opportunities to those involved in the organization.<\/p>\n

\u201cI like making a difference,\u201d Dean said. \u201cI\u2019m not usually given the opportunity to give $5,000 to something I really care about. After we give the money, a lot of times we\u2019ll get letters telling us how much of a difference we\u2019ve made.\u201d<\/p>\n

MCYAC has left a lasting effect on many of its members.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a unique volunteer opportunity where in the youth actually get to have a say, it\u2019s not just a parent or an adult-run organization, and it\u2019s not even officer-run,\u201d Malecki said. \u201cIt\u2019s more or less everyone votes on everything and gets a fair say. That\u2019s what got me into really staying with it.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Students utilize local organization to make a difference in community<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[42],"class_list":["post-2981","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-1-news","tag-student-activities-dow-high"],"yoast_head":"\nMidland youth take action - UPDATE ONLINE<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/update.midlandps.org\/index.php\/2012\/04\/midland-youth-take-action\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Midland youth take action - UPDATE ONLINE\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Students utilize local organization to make a difference in community\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/update.midlandps.org\/index.php\/2012\/04\/midland-youth-take-action\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"UPDATE ONLINE\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/DHSUpdate\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2012-04-08T12:24:55+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2012-04-09T12:26:55+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Update\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@DowHighUpdate\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@DowHighUpdate\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Update\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/update.midlandps.org\\\/index.php\\\/2012\\\/04\\\/midland-youth-take-action\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/update.midlandps.org\\\/index.php\\\/2012\\\/04\\\/midland-youth-take-action\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Update\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/update.midlandps.org\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/be39f258dafaaac3e98f5951fe5e9198\"},\"headline\":\"Midland youth take action\",\"datePublished\":\"2012-04-08T12:24:55+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2012-04-09T12:26:55+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/update.midlandps.org\\\/index.php\\\/2012\\\/04\\\/midland-youth-take-action\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":878,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/update.midlandps.org\\\/#organization\"},\"keywords\":[\"Student Activities Dow High\"],\"articleSection\":[\"NEWS\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/update.midlandps.org\\\/index.php\\\/2012\\\/04\\\/midland-youth-take-action\\\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/update.midlandps.org\\\/index.php\\\/2012\\\/04\\\/midland-youth-take-action\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/update.midlandps.org\\\/index.php\\\/2012\\\/04\\\/midland-youth-take-action\\\/\",\"name\":\"Midland youth take action - UPDATE ONLINE\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/update.midlandps.org\\\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2012-04-08T12:24:55+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2012-04-09T12:26:55+00:00\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/update.midlandps.org\\\/index.php\\\/2012\\\/04\\\/midland-youth-take-action\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/update.midlandps.org\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/update.midlandps.org\\\/\",\"name\":\"UPDATE ONLINE\",\"description\":\"H.H. 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